Jude Bellingham stats: How many Champions League goals has he ...

It’s been quite the year for Jude Bellingham. The 20-year-old midfielder only joined Real Madrid last summer but has wasted little time in making the Spanish capital his home.

The Englishman has lit up the Santiago Bernabeu in his first season with Madrid, leading the team’s goal-scoring in both LaLiga and the Champions League. Madrid, still awaiting the long-promised arrival of Kylian Mbappe, are currently without an elite centre forward but Bellingham has shown incredible instincts in front of goal.

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He is currently the joint-leader in the LaLiga scoring charts after hitting 16 goals in his first 23 games. In the Champions League he has been just as clinical, recording four goals and four assists in just six appearances. Across his time with Madrid and Borussia Dortmund, Bellingham has scored ten Champions League goals in 29 games.

Manchester City head coach Pep Guardiola is only too aware of Bellingham’s talent. Speaking to reporters ahead of the Champions League quarter-final clash, Guardiola admitted: “His impact has been massive. It’s a different team from last season. His influence is obvious, and we have to try to discover what he does to control it.”

Bellingham’s arrival has breathed new life into a Real Madrid team that looked light in attack following the departure of former captain and Ballon d’Or winner Karim Benzema. The Englishman has led the team in goal-scoring this season but has been ably assisted by teammate Vinícius Junior.

The Brazilian missed a significant portion of the season due to injury but has still contributed 12 goals and five assists in 20 LaLiga appearances. In the Champions League his record is just as impressive, with three goals and three assists from just five games. Vinícius has flourished into one of the most dynamic attacking talents in world soccer in recent years and, with Kyle Walker unavailable, Manchester City fans cite him and Bellingham as Madrid’s main threats.

In recent meetings between the two teams Vinícius has given City fans plenty of reason to be fearful. In 2022 he scored a stunning solo goal, beating Fernandinho on the halfway line and carving through the Manchester City defence to score. Last year, too, he made his mark, opening the scoring at the Bernabéu with a thumping strike from 25 yards.

On paper, Manchester City look the more structured and more complete of the two teams. They boast a well-balanced squad that has been groomed to expose the style of play favoured by Pep Guardiola, square pegs in square holes wherever you look.

Real Madrid do not quite have the same feel. They have a generous allocation of the finest players in the world and a coach with decades of experience, but they lack the on-ball cohesion that City boast. What they do have, however, is two of the most potent attacking talents in world soccer, Bellingham and Vinícius. No matter the quality of this Manchester City team, their supporters have every reason to be fearful as they head into the Bernabeu once again.